jazzbo

Okay, I finally got this two cd set (Postcards. ..) and I must say. . . half of the disc is great, the other half, and the bonus disc, well. . . not my cup of tea! Hard to say even why half is great and half isn't because they are all pretty similar, but there's just something to half of it that is slick and grating. I really have not warmed up to the Dead material with two drummers after Mickey's return. . . . I much prefer just Billy Kreutzman. . . that has a lot to do with what I don't like about half of this I think. If you think you have to have this and can only find the single disc version, you're really not missing much at all by not having the two tunes on the bonus disc, which are in my opinion the worst of the lot.

I haven't fully digested this set yet, but I'm really enjoying this six cd box set from Rhino of his five solo cds, with a lot of extra tracks on each cd, and including a sixth cd of extras. There is actually a lot of variety in his recordings, and the playing is excellent throughout, and this box set is well remastered with a nice booklet. For fans of the very musically well-heeled Mr. Garcia this is well worth exploring. I got mine at a great price from cduniverse.com as well.

Kevin. . . I like it!

I'm in the minority too. I enjoy the Night of the Cookers volumes, but I like jam sessions and that could be it; this has that something that a lot of rehearsed studio sessions don't, and that is a something I like!

Yes, goodbye to Mr. Huff. I think he's a good singer and a nice person and I'm going to really miss him in the competition!

Book Fever. . . I can't pass by a library without getting it! Nice cover, thanks!

Forget that stuck-up old dude. If you want Booker covers to get attention you need to make something like this into something like "Booker Fever" Like the Sinatra choices, they already own the rights to the cover art. . . .That's gotta save a few reissue dollars!

I have yet to hear the lp or the cd version, but I did realize that they had to trim about two minutes from the total of both lps to fit it onto a cd. . . and that doesn't normally sound like something I'd want! So I guess I'll probably seek out the lp version one day soon. . . . I sort of enjoy having at least one session of one of my favorites NOT acquired. . . I HATE to get to the end of the work of one of my favorites!

I didn't dig the Queen tune (just didn't seem to fit with my idea of a tune for the big band night mostly, and really didn't have much to distinguish it vocal-wise to my ears) but I thought her version of "What are you Doing with the Rest of your Life" was perhaps my favorite performance of hers. I only count one "white chick" who I thought did an okay job. Otherwise, as much as I LOVE George, he didn't take any chances and fell flat to me, and Latoya SLAYED with her performances. And I liked Jasmine's second performance---it was perhaps her very best yet. The band. . . well I knew they wouldn't get much chance to shine on their own, but they did a decent job. I didn't recognize anyone. The drummer was cool.

I actually think the LT cover with the red high heel . . . well. . . I like that cover!

Herman. . . it's a Columbia label product. . . ALWAYS delayed!

Yes, Slave's Mass looks great. .. I'm hoping to snag a copy from Dusty Groove when they become available. . . .

I like it! There's a killer Ponder solo or two, the usual fantastic drumming from Idris, and although this may not be the very best of this band's output, it's a solid effort in my estimation.

I'm fond of the Hutcherson. . . and expanded, no less, great! Wish they weren't Connoisseurs however, for sonic reasons.

Yes. There is also a two cd set on JSP that has material NOT on the Mosaic set.

I can recommend an album that is available by Aleuda that Hermeto produced, arranged, and plays an awful lot of the accompanying music on, that Dusty Groove has been stocking for some time. . . . Very interesting session. . . ! Has a fusion feel, has that Hermeto wackiness too.

Agreed: James Baldwin's work should be read and savored.

I'll bet that was indeed a great concert! I love Hermeto's music. . . . His writing for big bands is really wonderful, as witness one of his very first recordings outside Brazil, the Cobblestone/Muse huge band recording. . . . I've never seen him perform, but that joy of playing (and that exploratory drive and real mastery of so many many instruments) comes through in his recorded performances, indeed.

The sound quality is quite comparable in all ways to the Bix/Tram/Tea set. The material is varied. . . I personally don't feel that this is very similar to Django's music, it's different, and there are duets between Lonnie Johnson and Eddie Lang and other combinations that make this different than the Django sides as well. In a lot of ways the material is more comparable to the Bix/Tram/Tea set, when Lang and Venuti are in jazz groups. I really like this stuff. I had most of the material on other sources, and still preordered the Mosaic because I am very excited at the direction that these represent, and happy with all those released.

Looks as if these can still be purchased through the amazon.fr site, they still show a good number of these as "available in one or two days". . . . I must admit that I have had success ordering a Charlie Christian Master of Jazz from them after the label went out of business. Try doing a search for "Masters of Jazz Sidney Bechet" . . . .

I hope it was a great show. I ended up being unable to attend!

Hmmmm. . . just thought it looked a bit lilke Humair to me but I haven't seen many photos. I have both Combelle Chronogical Classics and really enjoy them.

I've been listening to the early Liszt transcriptions for piano of some Beethoven symphonies lately. . . . Wonderful stuff!

Ah, Cordwainer Smith! Yes, an excellent writer. . . !

Naomi Mitchison "The Corn King and the Spring Queen" . . . a novel of ancient Scythia, Sparta and Egypt published in 1932. Sort of fantasy, nicely written. I'm digging it!